Logistics Problems in New South Wales: Current Trends and Solutions

This essay analyzes the current trends in the supply chain that are experienced by the logistics companies and retailers located in New South Wales. It highlights the challenges faced by companies like Qube Holdings Pvt and Zara and suggests measures to address the present issues.

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Logistics Management
By (Name)
Course
Professor
University
Date

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Introduction
This essay ascertains the current trends in the supply chain that are experienced by the
logistics companies and retailers located in New South Wales. Different research has been
undertaken regarding the shortcomings that are associated with the supply chain. It indicates that
congestion exists in ports that neighboring New South Wales. Such areas include Port Kembla,
Port Jackson, and even Port Botany. Port Botany is more essential of the three because it is able
to handle high capacities. Among the current issues that the state faces are high costs which are
brought about by congestion on traffic routes as well as other challenges due to network routes.
In western Sydney, the scarcity of land hinders the development of logistic infrastructure
especially areas close to the port. These interests in regard to the present problems have been
analyzed based on the companies’ case studies. Companies like Qube Holdings Pvt and kiosk
Zara and other ports that face these similar issues are analyzed in this essays. The different
challenges that are encountered by all these organizations have been highlighted in this case
study. According to the current trends, the decline in customer service is a problem that is facing
Zara Company. Besides, some concerns addressed by the report are linked to the suppliers’
inability to follow the law if they are to have a transportation channel that is fast. The situation
that is referenced regarding Qube Holdings is due to the set-up of a new intermodal station that
aims at improving Moorebank’s logistic system. This essay addresses some of the problems
associated with the upcoming facility. However, different qualitative study shows that it is
essential for the government to contribute in addressing the present logistic problems. The
sustainability of the operations has been shown according to different qualitative studies held on
different challenges.

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Logistics Problems at NSW
The present problems that are faced by Western Sydney are as a result of the dispersed
terminal station that oversees the logistics activities in the country. Currently, procedures on
demand for materials are not in line with the delivery time of the same materials (Bierwirth,
Kirschstein and Meisel, 2012, pp.200). The lack of attention by the stakeholders is also
impacting on the organizations that engage in this business. Nonetheless, the government faces
many challenges when it comes to controlling the activities at the ports and ensuring that the
available land is maximally utilized. This consists of the scope of the rail route that is situated
near Port Kembla.
As noted by Black, Roso, Marusic and Brnjac (2018), in New South Wales, KPMG came
up with a model that assisted in the study of the problems that are related to skillful labor
deficiency in the logistics sector (Black, Roso, Marušić and Brnjac, 2018, pp.42). According to
the study, workers taking part in the supply chain field do not have good managerial and
leadership skills hence need to improve them for proper operations in the present situation.
Organizations like Qube are taking an important part in developing intermodal transport
at Moorebank as Dekker, Bloemhof and Mallidis (2012) note. Some of the firms mentioned are
having many problems in their network routes that are continuously affected due to interrupted
trade routes which are in close link with the inland passenger rail that is being constructed from
Melbourne to Brisbane (Dekker, Bloemhof and Mallidis, 2012, pp.674). There are a lot of
questions coming up as to whether inter transport station services are able to deliver an open-
ended logistic solution to the tenants found in this area. Also, the Liverpool council has objected
to the project due to the possible health hazards and the carbon emissions that will result from

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the construction process (Ghaderi, Cahoon and Nguyen, 2015, pp.72). Additionally, there have
been concerns form some of the experts regarding the increased congestions that will be as a
result of the construction activities.
In addition, Zara’s supply chain activities are to be questioned. This is because the
company has a reputation for its continued behavior to bleach the conventional practices that are
used in governing the supply chain operations, mainly in the clothing sector. This firm believes
that for a product to be successfully controlled, the control should be continuous until that
product reaches the customer (McIntosh, Newman and Glazebrook, 2013, pp.37). Zara’s
unethical practices that are linked to the activities of its supply chain have raised concerns among
experts regarding the ethical issues. This calls for Zara to improve on its social and the working
conditions, including giving its staff extra priority.
The other crucial problem is deficient of stevedoring companies that are able to associate
with the tenants found near the ports, especially at Port Botany because based on its demand, it is
the second largest port in Australia. The present stevedoring companies such as Brotherson Dock
and Container Terminal Australia have shown signs that they are not in a position to handle the
annual demand which is very high. Similar issues are faced by airport terminals and they are as a
result of increased air traffic among routes which link the Western Sydney freight line (Poulos, et
al., 2016, pp.260). The enhanced levels of e-commerce and cargo activities have contributed to
the problem of accommodating the high capacity of air traffic. Most of the initiatives which the
previous and the present government have taken are mainly focused on attaining the medium-
term goal but does not consider factors such as the health matters and environmental effects (Qi,
Liu, Aggarwal and Huang, 2017, pp.1361). The identified issues indicate that it is necessary to

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shift focus from New South Wales’ urban areas to its remote areas. It is observed that the
government introduced additional rail routes in 2013.
Measures of Addressing NSW’s Current Issues
Infrastructure companies that include Brookfield Partners are among the firms that avail
infrastructural resources to companies such as Asciano Limited and Qube holdings. Aimed at
addressing the present issues, there is a need to improve port operations at the port division of
Asciano Patrick (Roso, Russell, Ruamsook and Stefansson, 2015, pp.271). The reason for this is
because Asciano Patrick’s port has the capability to accommodate the increased demand for
containers. Also, this port has the ability to provide a solution that is long-term to South
Sydney’s present challenge of meeting the logistics demand. Notwithstanding, it is necessary to
ensure that the logistics routes have a focus that is augmented on the rail routes with the interest
of improving the flow of operations as well as improve on the speed of delivering services.
The use of the Southern highlands logistic hub can efficiently manage the present issues
that are linked to the intermodal logistics hub. Some of the regions found in Southern Highlands
have large spaces that can be used to construct new rail routes and to lower the present
congestion resulting from the traffic of road transit (Bergqvist and Monios, 2016, pp.81). These
regions are located at Moorebank and Port Botany. According to study, the highway that
connects Westlink M7 motorway to Western Sydney found in New South Wales has got plenty
of potentials of helping solve some of the issues affecting NSW’s logistics network. It is
important for the government to put some consideration whenever it selects the facility to a port.
Also, there are higher capabilities associated with the intermodal trade route that passes through

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the Southern Highlands. This is because its strategic location offers the opportunity of improving
the supply service.
According to Sturgess, Rahman, and Argyrous (2018), the rail route that is located in Port
Kembla has effectively minimized its likelihood of being impacted on by the cargo shipment by
means of rail route. One of the best position options to improve the logistic services at Sydney
hub are associated with the easiness of accessing the Sydney intermodal, including the M7 route.
If these two routes are linked, then New South Wales will have successfully proved useful in the
process of enhancing intermodal transportation by use of rail routes. Also, the current issue can
be solved by connecting the Sydney logistics via Illawara district (Buch and Agrawal, 2016,
pp.2219). The district has the capability of using a rail route to connect the logistic centers
located at Moss Vale. This route will also be important in availing an alternative mean of
accessing Western Sydney.
Additionally, by using this route, companies will avoid congestion that is associated with
this link (Sturgess, Rahman, and Argyrous, 2018, pp.68). Using the Transport for New South
Wales can help manage workforce challenges. The aim of an organization is to focus on the
present delivery cycle and to enhance customer service, transportation planning, as well as
improve logistics services. New South Wales’ Transport Freight and Logistics Co have
contributed to the present deficit in the need for engineers and for this reason, it is to be blamed.
The company is also associated with the deficit in the present requirements by the transportation
sector. Aimed at improving its current logistics operations, Zara is targeting to leverage its
capital assets (Caris, Macharis and Janssens, 2013, pp.109). The firm has made sure that its
capital investment has been increased both in the production and the distribution facilities. It is

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has been noted that the organization has recently invested a lot of its capital to help enhance and
improve the speed of its current supply chain.
Involvement of the New South Wales Government in Solving the Present Issues
To respond to the challenges that were associated with network congestion, the
government had put in place many initiatives. Additionally, the government has presently
actualized several initiatives including the Public-Private Partnership to aim at improving the
supply activities of firms (Golinkoff, Ma, Song and Pasek, 2013, pp.324). As observed, the NSW
government also has proved to be fully committed to improving the supply operations at Qube
Holdings Private Limited. This company focuses on constructing an intermodal station which
will link Port Botany to the South Australian Suburbs through Moorbank. This project’s
intention is not only to locate the importers or the exporters but also to enhance the logistic trade
routes within NSW (Regmi and Hanaoka, 2012, pp.31). There are huge chunks of land available
to construct industrial storages and supply chain operations as evidenced by the more than 240
hectares that are set aside for the construction of the logistics center. Some of the present issues
that affect the warehouse managers as well as the tenants will thus be addressed because the
demand for logistics services will have been sufficed to attain the present capacity requirements
(Bergqvist and Monios, 2014, pp.23). Notwithstanding, this initiative will also help in enhancing
the reduced demand in the rail route services and it will also at improving the current situation of
the logistics operations.
The other group that will benefit from this project are the tenants as well as logistic
operators. As noted by the Qube logistics chairman, the undertaking by the New South Wales’
government on the interstate rail project will not have any effects with the present operations at

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Qube because this proposed rail route is only to operate between Brisbane and Melbourne.
Additionally, this Southern Sydney rail route has got reduced likelihood to interfere with the
freight route since there is the unavailability of the train for passengers. The route will improve
the transportation activities between Moorebank and Port Botany (Song, Kim and Kim, 2013,
pp.1805). There has been support from other institutions such as the Australian Track
Corporation to make sure that the project carried out by Qube Holdings is complete. Within the
first five years, the government has funded the project by allocating $250 million.
The government has also taken the initiative of including third-party logistics operators
so that they share on the opportunity of gaining access to the terminal at Moorebank. The policy
mechanism that is put in place by the NSW’s government ensures that there is a mutual benefit
that results from the entire process of setting up the intermodal terminal within the supply
chain’s operations. All these benefits are meant for the tenants that engage as well as the
distribution activities (Pourbeyram, Nazemosadat and Mafi, 2015, pp.14493). Also, the benefits
are meant to improve the transportation services, which will translate to increased
competitiveness against other competitors in the transportation facilities.
As noted by Regmi and Hanaoka (2012), the NSW government has initiated several
initiatives. Such initiatives consist of leasing two primary ports that are located in Southern
Sydney. These two ports consist of Port Kembla that specializes in the handling the grain
products and Port Botany (Lam and Gu, 2013, pp.263). Other several initiatives that are focused
on the refinancing of Port Kembla’s operations, as well as the Enfield Intermodal logistic center,
have been put in place by the government. This is also inclusive of other ports which consist of
the Cooks Rail terminal and the Port Botany.

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Poulos, et al., (2016) observes that the NSW’s present initiative is to come up with an
uninterrupted fast access to Port Yamba’s national rail network. The government has also
improved the facilities at Port Kembla through development and upgrading the Princess
Highway that is meant to facilitate road transport thus minimizing congestion (Hoefnagels, et al.,
2014, pp.799). The initiatives that the government undertook to make sure that the efficiency of
the port activities is maintained is through the development of terminals at Port of New Castle.
Last, observing the different initiatives that have been put in place by the government, it
is clear that these present actions are also focused on improving the size of the terminal space
located at Port Jackson as Varsei and Polyakovskiy (2017) note. The government also targets at
putting up new port structures at Port Botany and get involved in the drilling activities with the
aim of meeting the rising demand. Some of the other observable involvement by the government
also include constructing new road terminal points that will enhance Port Botany’s container
operations (Varsei and Polyakovskiy, 2017, pp.237). In addition, the NSW’s government is
improving the operations of the containers at Port Botany to make sure that the loading speed
and the unloading process is efficient. The inefficiency at this port hinders the distribution
process of large containers. New South Wales’ government has also incorporated a warfare at
Port Jackson and it will help to promote the growth of internal tourism and enhance the supply
chain activities.
Conclusion
The deep analysis by this essay indicates that the present rail and road network issues
which consist of the congestion in New South Wales affect firms such as Zara Holdings and
Qube. The essay has also identified some of the action plans and several qualitative tools that can

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be used to improve efficiency in the current situation. The Public-Private Partnership is one of
the best solutions that can address the challenges that are linked to the deficiency in the
intermodal logistics facility. The essay has also analyzed deeply sustainability by making sure
that land resources are properly utilized and coming up with a logistics center at the Southern
Highlands of Southern Sydney. The different initiatives by the government makes sure that the
current operations are sustainable. Enhancing the Moss Vale enterprise zone will also prove
beneficial since it will facilitate the current logistics activities.

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